Broomfield 50th anniversary: Her roots stretch back to family farm

FAMILY FARM TURNED OPEN SPACE: Renee Kozisek Sereff kneels next to wheat stubble at The Field open space, which was once part of her family s farm.
(
David R Jennings
)

There was a time when Broomfield went from being a sprawling farming community to a growing bedroom community. To Renee Kozisek-Sereff, it felt as if it happened overnight.

Born in Broomfield in 1946, Kozisek-Sereff grew up on the family farm that was purchased in 1915 by her grandparents, Amelia and James Kozisek. The land stretched from 10th Avenue and Main Street to about where the Mamie Doud Eisenhower Public Library now stands. The Kozisek barn and silo were at the top of the hill, where the historic Brunner Farmhouse is now located.

With a total of 400 acres spread throughout the area, the Koziseks grew wheat and owned livestock. But in the late 1950s, Kozisek-Sereff said her grandmother sold the water rights to the property. That was the beginning of the end, as both ponds on the 10th Avenue property began to dry up.

Her father, Bob Kozisek, sold off portions of their land, one of which became the Broomfield Swim and Tennis Club in 1958. Kozisek-Sereff said her father wasn't aware the pool was to be a private membership club, and after it was completed, his children were not allowed in.

"We actually couldn't get in to our own property," she said. "My dad had to buy us a membership."

When Kozisek-Sereff and her little sister, Susie, were growing up, Main Street was nothing more than a dirt road. Seeing a car travel up the dusty lane was exciting, she said.

But the town was destined to grow, and neighborhoods were popping up among the farmland.

"When houses came in, we made friends, but my dad was worrying about the neighbors' dogs killing our sheep. And they did," she said.

Kozisek-Sereff attended the first elementary school, located on the southwest corner of 10th Avenue and Main Street. When the cottage schools were built on First Avenue, she moved there when she was about 10 years old.

In 1961, Broomfield's first high school opened.

As a student at Broomfield High School, Kozisek-Sereff said life was simple back then.

MEMORIES OF A DIFFERENT BROOMFIELD: Renee Kozisek
Sereff s father, Bob Kozisek, grills in the family s driveway, where Midway Boulevard is now, in 1964.
Photo courtesy of Renee Kozisek Sereff

The town's teenagers kept busy by being involved with school, church and 4H.

"Girls went to 4H to learn to cook and sew, and boys learned about farming," she said.

There wasn't much to do, so school activities were a huge part of early Broomfield life.

Kozisek-Sereff was a cheerleader from 1959 to 1963.

"Every female in high school was part of the pep club," she said, "and they all got blue sweaters."

When they piled into the bleachers, a sea of blue represented the Eagles.

There was still time for a little mischief. One warm evening, Kozisek-Sereff and friends were out "TP-ing" houses. She was stopped by the chief of police, Ed McCarthy.

"Everybody knew everybody back then," she said. "When he saw me he said, 'Renee, do you have toilet paper behind your back?' When I said yes, he told me to put it down, turn around and go home."

The town continued to move forward. The day Kozisek-Sereff realized farming life was ending and city life was inevitable was one of the saddest of her life. It began as her father moved their cattle from the pastures on 136th Avenue to the family farm.

"The cattle were up where Country Estates is now," she said. "My dad was bringing them down the middle of Main Street."

Her job was to keep the cows from wandering onto the high school property.

"The cows came down the street, turned into our driveway, which was where the Brunner house is, and walked right into a sale truck."

The family refers to that moment as the "Kozisek Last Round-Up."

The milk cows were already gone, and the wheat fields had all dried up. But the moment those white-faced Herefords walked into that trailer was a turning point.

"Of course, we all stood there and bawled as we watched it," Kozisek-Sereff said.

Today, Kozisek-Sereff said she couldn't be happier with what city leaders have done in Broomfield. Keeping some of the old farms as open space, so new residents can enjoy them, has meant a lot to her and her family.

Growing up in a small community with nothing to do has given Kozisek-Sereff an appreciation for the activities now available to the kids of Broomfield as well.

"They care about our kids, and they've really kept the original hometown feel," she said.

HOME SWEET HOME: The land where the Kozisek houses were the dirt road is Main Street and the little house in the corner is just south of where Midway Boulevard is today.
Photo courtesy of Renee Kozisek Sererff

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